We are raised to believe that risk-taking is a virtue and that risk avoidance is a form of cowardice or narrow-mindedness.

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For problems cast as social contracts or as questions of risk avoidance, by contrast, non-psychopaths got it right about 70% of the time.

ECONOMIST: Psychopathy

On both sides of the Atlantic, the net result is the same: a huge risk-avoidance endeavour which reflects the illusion that everyday life can be made almost perfectly safe.

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Here, two related issues have emerged: the avoidance of risk and the need for liquidity.

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With a focus first and foremost on reliability and avoidance of risk, it is generally the antithesis of a culture that thrives on new and revolutionary ideas.

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Campaigners say such schemes exploit workers by putting them at risk of being chased for unpaid taxes and have described the practice as "abusive tax avoidance".

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